Smithywood Colliery

Customer: St Paul’s Developments / Yorkshire Forward

Value: £3.6 million

The former Smithywood opencast colliery and coking works extended to over 23 hectares and was located on the north east outskirts of Sheffield close M1 Junction 35. It was to be developed for industrial, business and public leisure use.

The project required the re-engineering of 600,000m³ of former opencast fill and natural materials, stabilization of mine workings and the bioremediation of up to 6,000m³ of contaminated materials. An overbridge over a live carriageway was also demolished as part of the works. Several geosynthetic clay lined balancing lagoons were constructed, including timber access stairways to the adjacent concrete outfall structures into the adjoining Blackburn Brook.

Parts of the site provided 12 hectares of new woodland, several tree planted areas, 2km of new footpaths, a bridleway, 2km of cycle track and a 1.5km section of Sheffield’s new “Sustrans Route”, which followed the route of the old railway line towards the city centre.